A simple pasta salad recipe that uses only 7 ingredients. It is fresh, light, and the perfect BBQ or picnic side.
OK so it is pretty much hotter than hades here and all I want to do is sit in front of my AC with the fan on high!
Cooking? Ppffftttttt heating up anything is soooo NOT on my list of things to do.
Although I have been craving peanut butter chocolate chip cookies the last few days. The Mr is working nights this week so maybe I will crank a few dozen out in the middle of the night when I can move without my eyelids sweating!!
But, back to this recipe.
This Mediterranean Pasta Salad is the BOMB.com!!
It is simple, uses only 7 ingredients, only requires 8 minutes to boil the pasta while you chop a few veggies, and it blows other pasta salads right out of the water!
I have kinda been on a pasta salad kick lately. Most of our proteins and quite a few veggies are being cooked on the grill and to me, pasta salad is the perfect side for anything grilled or BBQed.
Oh the bowls of pasta goodness that have gone through my kitchen 
We have had Jalapeno Popper Pasta Salad, Creamy Latin Style Pasta Salad, Kitchen Sink Macaroni Salad, and of course Classic Macaroni Salad.
But, even being the pasta freak lover that I am, I can even admit that pasta salads can be a bit heavy. I love to eat them, but sometimes they hit bottom like lead and a nap becomes what I want in my near future.
But this 
OhhEmmGeee!
I told the Mr that I had made a couple new pasta salads but you know how that goes. In one in, out the other, pasta what?
So I grilled up a pork tenderloin and zucchini and popped a good amount of this pasta salad on his plate.
Then I waited.
He, of course, went in for the tenderloin first. He is if anything, a die hard carnivore.
I heard compliments on my pork cookery, which I of course loved.
Who doesn’t love a nice pat on the back for a meal well cooked? I soak it up like a sponge!!
Then he moved on to the salad.
He took one bite,
then another,
then another.
Then he stopped long enough to say, “Wow this pasta salad is awesome! It is so light and refreshing”.
Booya baby mission accomplished!
When The Complainer tells me that he could eat something every day and not get tired of it?
Ya, I know I done good 
One of the ingredients that I use in this recipe is store bought Tzatziki salad dressing.
I do have a recipe for homemade, and it is uber delicious, but so many of you have asked for quick and easy recipes that can be pulled together in just a few minutes, so I took that as a green light to “cheat” just a tad because just as much as I don’t want to heat up my kitchen right now, I also don’t want to wash a boat load of dishes either.
Quick, easy, simple?
These are currently all my favorite words.
So, let’s recap.
We have a delicious pasta salad, that is done in about 10 minutes, uses only 7 ingredients, is full of fresh veggie goodness, and makes even the pickiest pasta salad lover a happy camper.
#Winning
Of course Miss Picky Pants wouldn’t eat it.
She doesn’t like pasta salad.
What is wrong with this child?
I would swear she was switched at birth, but she isn’t called Mini Me for nothing 
Yield: 8 to 10 servings
Mediterranean Pasta Salad
A simple Mediterranean Pasta Salad that uses only 7 ingredients. It is fresh, light, and the perfect BBQ or picnic side.
prep time: 10 MINScook time: 8 MINStotal time: 18 mins
INGREDIENTS:
- 1 pound farfalle pasta
- 1 lemon, juiced
- 1 large cucumber, peeled, seeded, and diced
- 3 large Roma tomatoes, seeded and diced
- 1/2 small red onion, diced
- 1/4 cup Italian parsley leaves, chopped
- 1 cup Tzatziki salad dressing (may be called Cucumber Dill salad dressing)
- Kosher salt
- Fresh cracked black pepper
INSTRUCTIONS
- Heat a large pot of water to boiling. Salt the water (should taste like sea water) and add the pasta. Cook per package instructions. Drain and set aside.
- Toss cooked pasta with the lemon juice and allow to cool a bit, then add the cucumber, tomato, red onion, parsley, and salad dressing
- Toss well, add salt and pepper to taste.
All recipes and their respective images are original and the sole property of Bobbi’s Kozy Kitchen © 2011-2017, with all rights, reserved.
Created using The Recipes Generator
Like what you see? Please leave me a comment!
Planning on making one of my recipes? Nothing would make me happier! Take a photo and share it on Instagram or Twitter and tag @BobbisKozyKtchn I would love to see what you made. You might even make it into our newsletter!!
Thank you for reading and supporting companies I partner with. Doing so allows me to create more unique content and recipes for you.
This post contains affiliate links. As always, all opinions are my own.
Leave a Reply